Breached
by coramdeo8
Summary: A missing Navy scientist calls the NCIS team in to action, leading them to find that he has some big secrets that may account for his disappearance. Meanwhile, Tony tries to uncover a secret that Ziva is keeping from him and the rest of the team.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: This is my first attempt at a full length work. I actually got this idea months ago and tried to start it up, I even posted a chapter to it. However, I was dissatisfied with its potential and deleted it from this site. Following the same idea, I have begun to rewrite it with the inspiration of a few new ideas. The timeline of this story occurs within the period of time that will occur later this season. You could say its my idea of what could happen at the end of this season, in a manner of speaking. Of course they're will be some angsty sexual tension, but I've also tried to concoct a mystery to investigate that will run parrallel to it. I love reviews, both praise and constructive criticism. Hope you enjoy!_

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**Prologue**

A bright orange sky illuminate the Washington D.C. airspace as the sun began to set. The temperature of a hot spring afternoon was finally beginning to dissipate with each passing moment. Just as darkness fell upon the city, Lieutenant Gary Harris exited the Navy Research Laboratory. His car was parked on the other side of the parking lot. The lot was empty, as most of the people already had left work for the evening.

As Harris walked towards his car, he could hear the echo of his shoes tapping the pavement with every step. He accelerated his pace, and constantly swiveled his head taking note of his surroundings. The silence of the area made him uneasy.

When he finally reached his car, he slammed his door and locked it behind him. He looked in to the backseat, making sure that nobody was waiting there to attack him. He then threw his car in to gear and sped out of the parking lot.

All seemed fine. But he kept checking his surroundings, looking in the rear view mirror to make sure he wasn't being followed. Whenever someone seemed to be following, they would eventually veer off on to another street.

It was now completely dark out. The only light provided was the streetlights which illuminated the road on which he drove, and the full moon in the sky above. Harris looked in his rear view mirror once more, and noticed a black SUV veer in to the turn lane behind him. He fought the urge to let his fear overtake him. By inhaling and exhaling deeply, he tried to make himself relax; trying to assure himself that everything would be alright. The light finally turned green, and Harris turned on to the next street.

After a few miles, he noticed that the black SUV still tailed him closely. He tested the intentions of the driver by turning down random streets, and each time the SUV followed. Harris pulled out a set of rosary beads from his pocket, and silently recited a prayer.

Finally, he turned down the street to his house and pulled in to his driveway. He turned off his headlights, but left his car running. He sat in his car peering out the window towards the street, checking to see if the SUV followed him. The seconds that passed seemed like minutes. As he held back his frantic breathing, he could feel his heart thumping wildly within his chest. He continued to recite the prayer as he fumbled with the beads between his fingers.

Down the street a pair of headlights slowly made its way down to his house. Eventually then came to a gradual stop next to the sidewalk in front of his house. A tear welled in Harris' eye as the realization of all his fears became evident. His hands trembled as panic rushed through every limb of his body. Unsure of what to do, he clenched the steering wheel tightly within his hands. He strained in thought as he tried to think of a way to save himself from the evil that pursued him.

Then, the headlight of the SUV turned off. He knew it was only a matter of time before his pursuers came after him. Harris lifted the rosary to his face, and stared at the cross which was attached to it. He pressed the cross to his lips, and kissed it. "Protect me, Lord."

He heard to car doors slam behind him. A rush of adrenaline kicked in as he threw his car in to reverse. Gunshots rang out as he came to a stop within the street. The rear window to his car shattered as a bullet ripped through it. He through his car in to gear, and peeled out down the neighborhood street.

Harris sped through traffic as the black SUV followed close behind. He weaved in and out of traffic on the streets, avoiding accidents while also trying to escape what he assumed to be his death. Frantically, he picked up his cell phone and dialed 9-1-1.

"Hello, yes my name is Gary Harris. I am being-yes, yes my name is Gary. Gary Harris. I'm being chased by some men in a black SUV." He continued to narrowly miss fellow drivers, all honking at him for his reckless driving.

"I'm on 82nd headed North. I think they want to kill me…NO I don't know why!"

After narrowly making it through several red lights, Harris still sped down the street at an incredible pace. He eventually turned in to a suburban neighborhood, where he hoped that he could lose his pursuers in the maze of streets. To his misfortune, they remained hot on his tail.

After speeding through the streets of the neighborhood, Harris pulled back out on to the main road. He did this without stopping, and as a result almost collided with an oncoming pickup truck. He lost control, causing the grill to smash head on in to a light pole.

Harris woke up with a throbbing headache, unable to see anything except the blurred outline of his surroundings. His ears rang the echo of an explosion. From the hood of his car rose steam for the obliterated parts underneath its hood.

He heard the faint sound of footstep nearing his car. He looked out the shattered driver side window and saw two men with ski masks over their faces staring down at him. He couldn't discern what they were saying, but was able to barely mumble the only words that came to mind. "What…do you…want with me?"

**Chapter One – Missing**

Tony rocked back and forth in his chair while he twirled a pen between his fingers. Over the tops of his shoes, he noticed McGee pass the front of his desk. He was walking tall, and his chest was sticking out a little further than usual. His eyes contained an unusual flare; and a slight confident grin was etched upon his face. Tim's unusual confidence walking in to the work room caused Tony's eyebrow to quirk in curiosity. "Well, well; somebody is off to a good start to the day!"

McGee grinned a little more and shot a smooth look in Tony's direction. "Yes, Agent DiNozzo. I'm having a great day."

Tony removed his feet from the top of his desk and casually strolled over to McGee's desk. "So tell me, what's got you feeling good this morning? Were you promoted to the level of master wizard in your World of Warcraft account? Did you write a new book?"

McGee shot another knowing glance at Tony as he started up his computer. "Nope."

Tony chuckled. "Well what else could make such a techie feel so – lucky?"

"I, had a date this weekend," replied McGee as he fought to contain his urge to smile.

Tony squinted some as a mischievous grin crept on to his lips. Soon that grin emerged in to a maniacal chuckle. "McGee? A Date?"

McGee nodded.

Tony composed himself and placed both of his hands on the sides of his partner's shoulders. He looked deep in to his eyes spoke with a silly, yet genuine tone. "I have never been so proud!"

"I learned from the best."

Tony laughed. "I want to see her. Got any pictures?"

"That I do!"

"Good, McSwagger!"

McGee sat in his chair and opened up a picture of him, sitting cheek to cheek with a blonde haired, blue eyed angel.

Tony's laughed in disbelief. "Noooo!"

McGee smiled. "You better believe it."

"I have just gained so much more respect for you!"

While Tony and McGee ogled over the picture of McGee's new girlfriend, Ziva strutted in to the room with a grin of her own that she was trying to suppress. Both Tony and McGee looked at each other with curiosity.

"Good morning you two," Ziva exclaimed.

"Not you too," Tony replied.

"What?"

"Everybody is so cheery this morning. It goes against the atmosphere of a typical government job."

Ziva tilted her head. "Who else is cheery?"

"Well McGee had a hot date last weekend and-"

Ziva's eyebrows rose in excitement. "McGee, you had a date? Do you have a picture of her?"

"Right here!"

"I want to see her!"

Ziva walked over to McGee's desk and butted Tony out of the way.

"Wow! McGee she is beautiful. She is very lucky!"

"Thanks, Ziva!"

Tony squinted in curiosity in Ziva's direction. She grinned with excitement while she appreciated McGee's new love interest. She was a morning person, but Tony felt like she was more bubbly than she usually was. "What's the matter with you?"

Ziva whirled around and shot a curious look at him. "What do you mean?"

"Since when did you become so – cheery?"

"I am always cheery in the morning – Tony!"

Tony huffed. "Yes, but I never took you for the excited school girl type."

"Excited school girl type?"

"You know. Girl finds out her best friend met someone, they squeal together while jumping up and down on the bed…common in just about every chick flick."

Ziva furrowed her eyebrows. "So McGee and I will be jumping up and down?"

A blank stare formed on Tony's face. "No. I mean you seem like the excited school girl today!"

"Well maybe I'm just happy for McGee!"

"Or maybe something has you in such a good mood!"

Ziva lifted her eyebrows some and puckered the side of her mouth. "What are you referring to Tony?"

"Well, I don't know exactly. It could be a number of things. Maybe you got a raise. Maybe you ran in to an old friend." Tony paused. His expression shifted to a more serious one. His eyes peered in to Ziva's with a prodding gaze. "Perhaps, someone – did something nice to start your day?"

Ziva's jaw dropped some. Shocked at the nature of Tony's prodding, she opened her mouth to reply before she was cut off by another voice entering the room.

"I'm about to DiNozzo!" Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs walked in to the office gripping a Styrofoam cup of coffee. His silver, high and tight haircut was always parted neatly down the middle. Though a creature of habit, Gibbs' actions were always unpredictable. Somehow, even when he wasn't in a room, he knew everything that was being said; and he would inject at the perfect moment with the perfect comment. "Gear up. We've got a missing Navy scientist."

"Well if he's missing, why are we gearing up," inquired McGee from his desk chair.

Gibbs faced McGee and answered his question with his trademark, ice cold glare that caused even the most frightening men to shutter. He never said anything if he could say it with a look, and often times this glare was all he needed to make a point.

"You know, I don't know why I asked that. I'll just grab my gear." Flustered by Gibbs' stare of death, McGee began rifling through his stuff getting together everything he hadn't already unpacked.

"Good idea, McGee," replied Gibbs.

"If we don't know where he is then where are we headed," asked Ziva.

"To the last place that he was seen," answered Tony with a confident tone.

Gibbs interjected as he passed their desks while going to the elevator. "Nope. Where they found his car." Tony and Ziva exchanged bewildered looks with each other as they followed Gibbs out of the office.

"C'mon, Loverboy. We're waiting on you," hollered Gibbs with a sarcastic smirk as McGee struggled to gather his gear.

The bits of glass along the pavement crunched underneath Tony's shoes while he snapped pictures of notable evidence surrounding the crime scene. Yellow crime scene tape and road flares marked the boundary of all the evidence that surrounded the totaled car. The street light had crushed the grill all the way up to the engine block, and glass was missing from nearly every window.

In the gleam of the morning sun reflecting off of the pavement, Tony noticed a pool of blood next to the driver's side door. He placed a numbered yellow marker next to the dried fluid, and then snapped a picture of it.

"Tony, there's more in here." Ziva said as she leaned inside from the passenger side door while she brushed the interior for finger prints. He peered over towards her and she had a small upon her face.

"So you still haven't told me," started Tony as he captured a picture of the blood in the driver's seat.

"Told you what, Tony?"

"Why it is that you seem to have woken up on the right side of the bed this morning."

Ziva quirked her brow in confusion. "I usually sleep on the left."

Tony rolled his eyes. "I mean, why your're so…happy."

"Who says I'm happy, Tony?"

"That grin that you keep trying to hide. It's not working by the way."

Ziva moved in and sat in the passenger seat as she rifled through the glove box. "What is it a crime if I smile at work?"

"When investigating a crime scene, yes." Tony paused, "but then again it's you, the assassin, we're talking about after all."

Ziva huffed. "Maybe I just have other things on my mind that are more, happy."

"I already figured that part out."

Ziva turned and faced Tony. A knowing grin crept back on her face. "Why are you so curious about this?"

"Well, I am Senior Field Agent and it my duty to make sure I know the state of mind of my probette," Tony replied.

"Is it also your job to go through her e-mail when you hear she might be talking with a man?"

Tony replied merely with a sarcastic grin. "Get back to work!"

He squatted down once more and stared at the pool of blood. His eyes squinted for a moment when he took a closer look at the pool of blood. A large smear of blood protruded from the main spot towards the road. Next to it, he saw some more drops of blood which trailed out to the middle of the street. He followed the blood droplets until they stopped near a set of skid marks.

"Boss, I think I found something else."

Gibbs, Ziva, and McGee came and stood by Tony as he marked the tire streaks as evidence. "I don't think this was a typical accident, boss."

"I know it wasn't," Gibbs replied.

"So where did he go," inquired McGee.

"Just talked to Metro PD. They said he called in a panic, saying he was being chased."

Ziva began to put the pieces of the puzzle together in her head. "So we don't know where he is, but – "

"- we know someone found him," Tony finished.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 – Curiosity

"Lieutenant Gary Harris: graduated from Annapolis in nineteen ninety four with a double major in physics and biochemistry. Never married, no kids; his mother is the only parent he still has." McGee clicked the remote, making various documents regarding the missing soldier's background appear on the plasma television. "Clean record, no disciplinary action given at work."

Ziva stood next to McGee. "- and his transcript from college shows that he graduated at the top of his class."

"Sounds like our missing Lieutenant and McGee would have made good study buddies," interjected Tony.

"Any leads," asked Gibbs as he sipped coffee from his cup.

"As of right now we don't. He's got no black marks to lead us anywhere," replied Tony.

"That we know of, DiNozzo," replied Gibbs. "McGee, check his bank and phone records. Tony, take Ziva and interview his coworkers."

The lobby to the Navy Research Lab bustled with scientists and other employee's walking to and fro. Tony pulled his badge from his coat pocket as he and Ziva neared the front desk. A young, brunette vixen greeted the agents. "Good morning!" She took a particular interest in Tony. She leaned forward in her chair, and batted her eyelashes while she gave him a flirtatious grin.

Ziva rolled her eyes. It wasn't the first time that she would have to watch a woman flirt with Tony, or vice versa, while they were on the job.

"Hi. I'm special agent Tony DiNozzo from NCIS. This is my partner, agent Ziva David."

"Your partner," the receptionist asked in a flirty tone. "I'm thinking I'd like to be yours too!"

Tony grinned slightly. "Do you know this man?"

Ziva raised her eyebrows. Tony hardly ever turned down the advances of beautiful women. Yet, here he was remaining professional in the face of his ultimate weakness.

The receptionist stumbled over her words, surprised that her charm had no effect on the attractive male special agent. "Yes. Yes, I mean, I've never talked to him. I just see him whenever he checks in."

"I assume you haven't seen him at all today," inquired Ziva.

The receptionist paused. "No, actually I haven't."

"Can you tell us who might know more about him?"

"I'll call Lieutenant Colonel Hanson and let him know you're coming. His office is on the third floor."

"Thank you," Tony replied.

The two agents entered the elevator as the doors slid open. Nobody had entered with them when it began to ascend to the upper floors of the building. Ziva turned and eyed Tony curiously. "What has gotten in to you?"

Tony remained stoic. He didn't even turn to acknowledge her curiosity. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that you completely ignored the woman's advances on you. She was your type."

"I'm on the job, Ziva."

"It hasn't stopped you before!"

"I've also turned down women before. This isn't uncharted territory for me." Tony looked perturbed with Ziva's inquiry. The elevator came to a halt, and they exited in to the hallway as the approached the Colonel's office.

"You're not going back to that 'all-business' Tony you gave us a few months ago, are you?"

Tony stopped walking. "No," he replied sternly. "You already talked to me about it. This is me having balance. We're about to question somebody critical to this investigation, so if you don't mind let's talk about this later."

Ziva squinted judgmentally. "We will."

At the end of the hall there was a door that led to a large corner office. The plaque next to it identified it as Colonel Hanson's. Tony reached up and tapped his knuckles against the wooden door a couple of times. Footsteps approached the door, before it opened to reveal a man in his 50's. His hair had a mixture of black hair and spots of grey. His tall stature and intimidating build contrasted sharply with his warm, infectious smile. "Good morning. What can I do for NCIS?"

"I'm special agent DiNozzo. This is my partner Ziva David. We'd like to ask you a few questions about Lieutenant Gary Harris."

"Of course, come in and have a seat."

Tony sat himself down in chair next to Hanson's desk, while Ziva leaned herself up against a nearby bookshelf. "Would either of you like something to drink," asked Hanson.

"No, thanks," replied Tony.

Taken back by Tony's reply, the Colonel simply sat down behind his desk and once again flashed his pearly whites. "What can I tell you about Lietenant Harris?"

"When was the last time that you saw him," Tony asked.

Hanson paused. "Well, that would be yesterday afternoon."

"What time," Ziva pushed.

"Around the time that I left at five o'clock. Why? Is there something wrong?"

Ziva interjected. "We think that he may have gone missing."

A strange look of fear was aroused upon Hanson's face. "Missing? How do you know that?"

"His car was wrecked and he made a distress call shortly before," Tony answered. "We don't know why exactly. We were hoping that as his boss, you could give us some clues as to why he might be gone."

"Well I can't be sure. I was never very close to Harris, at least personally. Professionally we got along, but it was hard to get close to him. He was always so entrenched in his work; he never really made time for others."

"Did he have any problems with anybody here at the lab," Ziva asked.

"No. Like I said, he never really got close enough to people to even fight with them. He was brilliant, but not socially adept. Ironically, his only friend that I know of was one of our janitors here in the building."

"What was your impression of him these past few weeks," Tony continued.

Hanson sighed. "Well, the few times that I did talk to him, he was acting stranger than usual. He was always somewhat awkward in normal conversation. But lately, he's seemed distracted, or under constant pressure. His mind seemed like it was a million miles away from where he was at."

"Did you ask why?"

"At first I thought it was nothing. It was just Gary being Gary, so I thought," Hanson paused. "When it continued, I asked him if something was wrong. Obviously he replied by just saying that he was in a bit of a funk. I could tell there was more to what he was saying though."

"How," asked Ziva.

"I don't know. My gut, I guess. His restless spirit didn't seem to line up with his depression that he claimed to have."

Tony and Ziva exchanged glances. "Did he tell you anything else," Tony prodded.

"No. Other than that, he remained his usual, isolated self. However, I would be happy to let you interview some of our other scientists that worked with him. I'm sure they'll be able to help."

"What about his janitor friend," Ziva pushed.

"Yes, if you wish you can talk to him too," Hanson replied. "I hope that this helps you in your investigation." The Colonel stood and shook both of the agents hands, after which he began to dump a full ash tray in to the garbage can as they closed the door behind them.

"I think it will," said Tony in a snarky tone.

Tony and Ziva made their way back to the elevator from which they originally came. It would now be a long day of interviewing his peers as they tried to uncover the reasons for his disappearance.

"Well, he was certainly cordial about this whole procedure," Tony began.

"You think he's holding something back because he was polite," Ziva replied in a curious tone.

"They're never that polite unless they feel on edge, and they don't want to seem suspicious."

"Or he could just be a really nice man," Ziva suggested.

"C'mon Ziva," Tony scolded as he pushed the down arrow for the elevator. "You were the trained assassin. You're supposed to be able to read people. You don't think he's hiding something?"

"All I'm saying is that we don't know yet, we'll know more after the interviews." The elevator doors slid open and they stepped inside. "What is the basis for your suspicion?"

Tony laughed some. "His charming smile, yet his vague knowledge of what is going on within his own office tell me he's holding something back." Tony paused. "A bit like someone else that I know." Tony peered over at Ziva from the corner of his eye.

Astonishment emerged in Ziva's face. "You think that I'm still holding something back?"

"I know that you are."

"How?"

"That whole 'I'm in such a dandy mood for no apparent reason' act was an awful lie; and don't tell me that you were excited for McGee. It was clear the minute you walked in the office."

Ziva paused. "Why are you so curious, Tony?"

A mischievous smirk slithered across Tony's face. "So you no longer deny there is a reason!"

"It's a surprise," Ziva replied with a knowing grin.

Tony began to laugh sarcastically. "Well, is this an actual surprise? Or just your sneaky way of saying that there is a reason, but I'll never tell you."

Ziva pursed her lips in defeat, and she grinned some more. "You will see, Tony!"


End file.
